Organizers prepare for big crowds and high temperatures at Vancouver Pride Parade

For the first time since 2019, the Vancouver Pride Parade will weave through the streets of the West End on Sunday afternoon beginning at noon, and the Pride festival will return to Sunset Beach.

COVID-19 forced organizers to move the annual August long weekend Pride events online for the past two summers.

West End resident Devon Schultz dressed herself and her dog Gucci in rainbow outfits and visited Jim Deva plaza on Friday to mark the return of in-person Pride.

“I am so happy that Pride is back. It’s been a long, long two years, and it’s just so nice to be able to be together again,” Schultz said.

“Together Again” was overwhelmingly chosen as the theme of this year’s event.

“We are thrilled. We missed it, the energy out there, the feedback from community, that excitement about the events is energizing and electric,” said Keple.

With scorching hot temperatures expected through the weekend, she’s urging parade and festival-goers to come prepared.

“Put on a sun hat, cover yourself, reapply that sunscreen and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate,” Keple said. There will be water stations along the parade route and at Sunset Beach, so she’s asking everyone to bring a refillable bottle.

Surrey school teacher Annie Ohana was chosen to be one of the parade’s grand marshals.

“To me as an educator, being at the front really is a poignant message that as educators we can do so much to provide that safety, that happiness, that pride, in one’s identity,” said Ohana. “So to be a grand marshal is an opportunity to spread that message far and wide.”

“Annie Ohana as grand marshal, so delighted, total activist heart, always fighting for those experiencing layers of oppression,” said Keple, who added while the Pride parade has become a celebration for everyone, it’s important to remember it wasn’t always welcomed on the streets of Vancouver, and it took years of activism to bring about change.

“This year is a reminder of how good we are when we are together,” she said. “That energy and that spirit, celebrating the gains, reminding of the work to be done. And this weekend? A party.”